Images have been uncovered of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in brownface,ViewPoints newslatter

The PM spoke to media in Winnipeg Thursday afternoon, addressing the controversy that has snowballed since a first image was published by Time

Liberal leader Justin Trudeau addressed the blackface scandal again in Winnipeg this afternoon, saying he has changed for the better in the intervening years, and didn’t understand back then “how hurtful this is to people.”

“This is something that I deeply, deeply regret. Darkening your face regardless of the context or the circumstances is always unacceptable because of the racist history of blackface,” said Trudeau.

“What I did, the choices I made, hurt people. People who thought I was an ally,” he said, adding that when he sought public office he never told anyone he had worn blackface years earlier, because he was too embarrassed.

Asked if a Liberal candidate would be allowed to run if a similar photo was revealed, Trudeau said the party would evaluate that based on the context.

“I never talked about this — quite frankly I was embarrassed. It’s not something that represents the person I’ve become and the leader I try to be,” said Trudeau, when asked if such photos were mentioned during his own candidate vetting process.

The federal campaign was brought to a screeching halt Wednesday evening when an 18-year-old photo of Trudeau, dressed in an Aladdin costume with his hands and face darkened, was published by Time magazine.He had dressed up for a theme gala at the private school where he taught.

At that point he profusely apologized for having indulged in what he acknowledged was a racist act of wearing brownface, and confessed to another: wearing makeup during a high-school talent show, while performing a version of Harry Belafonte’s “Banana Boat Song (Day-O).”

Then Thursday morning, Global News published a video of a young Trudeau in blackface, showing him sticking out his tongue for the camera and raising his arms over his head, part of a montage of people apparently goofing around in a setting that’s hard to discern.

A Liberal spokesperson confirmed its authenticity and said it was filmed in the early 1990s, when he was in his early 20s.

Images of Justin Trudeau in blackface have caused uproar.Time

On Wednesday, Trudeau told reporters he only recalled two instances where he wore blackface. The video released Thursday was a third. When asked if it’s possible there are other instances, Trudeau said he was “wary of being definitive about this” because he didn’t remember the latest images.

“The fact is I didn’t understand how hurtful this is to people who live with discrimination every single day. I have always acknowledged that I come from a place of privilege — but I now need to acknowledge that that comes with a massive blind spot.”

He said he deeply regrets his behaviour, and understands the hurt he caused to people who face intolerance on a regular basis.

In an effort to deal with the fallout from the controversy, Trudeau delayed his campaign plans Thursday to make phone calls to Liberal party candidates and to leaders in different ethnic communities across the country.

NDP federal leader Jagmeet Singh challenged Canadians Thursday to try to see through his eyes the implications of a shocking trio of images catching Trudeau in racist acts.

This is a moment full of both political and personal resonance for the NDP leader, whose presence in the campaign as the visible-minority leader of a major party is a first for Canada.

Singh said he doesn’t know how he’ll be able to look Trudeau in the eye at all, after seeing the decades-old photos and videos of the prime minister with his face darkened on three separate occasions.

“Imagine what that would feel like if you’ve gone through pain in your life, if you’ve been treated differently, if you’ve faced insults, if you’ve faced physical violence because of the way you look, if you’ve been treated differently by the police, if you’ve faced systemic barriers,” Singh said at an event in Hamilton, Ont.

“And then to see the prime minister making light of that. How would someone feel living in this country? I can tell you that it hurts.”

Even Singh’s rivals acknowledged that perhaps he stands alone among them as the person who can best address the significance of what Trudeau did — both as a teenager and as an adult, including as a teacher at a Vancouver private school.

“I think I might take this opportunity to just highlight the response from Jagmeet Singh,” Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said at an event in Saint-Hyacinthe, Que.

“I thought he showed genuine concern and as someone who has obviously been victim of these types of things in a way I never have. I think he responded with a lot of class and dignity and obviously he was speaking on behalf of so many Canadians who have been victims of racist acts or mockery like that.”

Scheer suggested Thursday morning his campaign had been aware of the video and decided to pass it along to a media outlet.

Trudeau had conceded Wednesday night that it will take some doing to restore his image as a champion of diversity and tolerance.

“I’m asking Canadians to forgive me for what I did,” he had said during an emergency news conference aboard the Liberal campaign plane before taking off from Halifax for Winnipeg.

“I shouldn’t have done that. It was a dumb thing to do. I’m disappointed in myself. I’m pissed off at myself for having done it. I apologize for it.”

Singh said while Trudeau might apologize, it highlights a pattern.

He pointed to an incident in the spring when people advocating for better treatment for an Ontario First Nation struggling with mercury poisoning protested at a private Liberal fundraiser. During the event, a protester was escorted out of the room. Trudeau thanked her for her “donation.”

“I think there will be an impact on people’s decisions in this campaign in relation to what Mr. Trudeau has shown himself to be in public and now what we have seen in his private life,” Singh said.

“I think it shows that there is a difference there and a lot of legitimate questions coming forward because of that.”

Meanwhile, residents in Trudeau’s home riding expressed support for the Liberal leader on Thursday.

In Montreal’s multi-ethnic Papineau riding, people interviewed from different cultural communities said they don’t think Trudeau meant to offend.

Sani Piameng, the owner of an African butcher shop and grocery store, says Trudeau has often visited his store and even watched soccer games with him and his customers.

He says Trudeau is not a racist, and that’s more important than photos taken nearly 20 years ago.

Zahid Nassar, an immigrant from Pakistan, says he’s not bothered by the images because many people do regrettable things when they’re young.

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